Cultural Perception – Trust or Suspicion

At Fournier Strategies , we discuss the most difficult subjects for today’s leaders. We suggest that leadership, company culture,  effective strategies, and communication are the sources for  growing Brand Equity.

 

Perception is one of the most powerful words of the human dictionary. One cannot escape it. Even after death, perception remains. We establish perception about others. They establish perception of us. We judge, categorize, and make decisions based on perception.

“Perception, the way that someone thinks and feels about people, a company, management, product, service, etc.” – Cambridge

Careers are made and lost, decided by perception. Businesses are made and lost based on customer perception. Employees are influenced by their perception of management. Every department in business is influenced by perception. Perception is culture.

“I’m suspicious of people who don’t like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn’t like a person.” ―Bill Murray

The moment suspicions arise about a person, company, management or product, trust erodes. The customer or employee is alert for inconsistencies. If you are the customer, why would they continue to invest in a supplier for products? As an employee,  why would you provide the company more than necessary?

Accountability

I work with a variety of companies. One challenge consistently arises to tarnish trust. This challenge is unequal accountability. That is when management unfairly and unequally compares the performance of one employee to another. High performance employes resent those with mediocre performance. They resent management for the unequal comparison. They realize their future is limited. The entire team eventually degrades to the lowest common denominator.

Employee Expectations

Employee perception about management and the company is established by these fundamentals in this order.

  • The quality and equality of the TEAM environment
  • Job security
  • Compensation and benefits
  • Communication

Cultural perception contributes toward employee performance, employee retention, product and service quality, and customer relationships.

Perception Determines Cultural Health

Perception is the foundation of company culture. Vision, mission, and core values establish the boundaries. Cultural health impact sales revenue and customer retention. Why would a valued customer retain a toxic supplier? Why would they purchase more?

Perception is contagious. Worse than typhoid fever, it infects everyone. It prevents entire companies from achieving customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Perception Determines Leadership Effectiveness

The culture health of an organization is a statement about leadership. Challenged leadership is seldom tuned into the value of culture. Effective leadership is highly aware of the value of culture and internal relationships. In fact, they measure it and set strategies to manage culture.

They realize the combination of culture, strategy, and communication allows them to succeed. And with less anguish and stress.

Perception Determines Sales Revenue

Sales revenue is a result. Quality products and services are a result. Customer satisfaction and retention are a result.

Ask your most valued customer about your company’s perception. If they are truthful, you will discover the facts. Is your sales team on task? Is customer service helpful and solution driven? Is product or service quality satisfactory? How successful have your innovative introductions been with this customer?

Perception Influences Strategy

Trust or Suspicion. Contaminated employee perception struggles to achieve strategies. Typically, these organizations are task based, rather than objective based. Employees and leadership are consumed by solving symptoms rather than the source.

The real fact,

“Poorly managed cultures are consistently inconsistent. They struggle to achieve their goals.”

Communication

Communication is the glue to binding culture, perception, and performance. Communication connects leaders to employees. Employees better achieve objectives, communicate results, rewards are given, positive perception is established.

Effective communication attracts customer and quality employees to the company. In fact, communication supports innovation. Innovation thrives in this environment because customers want solutions.

Perception determines revenue, profitability, and shareholder value. It determines the valuation of the business and its book of business.

Financially, it means strategies are achieved. EBIT is managed. The organization becomes predictable. Investor expectations are satisfied, and reinvestment occurs.

360 Organizational Assessments

The 360 Organizational Assessment process allows management to manage culture, and therefore leadership. The assessment isolates deficiencies, which allows management to improve. It allows management to understand why strategies struggle to be achieved.

The vast majority of companies measure culture by gut feel. Emotions, relationships, and poor accountability result in misaligned organizations. These companies never achieve their capacity or potential.

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